(DOWNLOAD) "Computers and Young Children (Technology in the Classroom)" by Childhood Education " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Computers and Young Children (Technology in the Classroom)
- Author : Childhood Education
- Release Date : January 22, 2007
- Genre: Education,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 180 KB
Description
Sitting at our kitchen table, my 3-year-old daughter, Caroline, busily writes her great-grandmother a letter on pink princess note cards. Although Caroline only knows a few letters of the alphabet, she understands that writing carries meaning. When she finishes writing on the note card, she points out, "Look, Mama, I signed my name." She has attempted to create a large "C," to signify that the card was from her. After sealing the envelope and adding a sticker to the middle of it, Caroline insists that we immediately place her card in the mailbox. As we walk past my laptop on the way to the mailbox, Caroline announces that she now wants to type a letter. When asked what she knows about computers, Caroline answers, "I type," and dramatically pretends to type on a make-believe keyboard. The preceding vignette illustrates the prior background my 3-year-old daughter has about technology and writing, even though she has not been formally introduced to either literacy form. She sees computers in our home, and she understands that both technology and writing are a way to create meaningful texts. Technology is a way of life for our family, and our views of technology mirror the opinions of most Americans. A recent study published by the National Writing Project (2007) found that Americans believe that computers have a positive effect on writing skills. The importance of learning to use technology ranked just below learning to read and write, and 74 percent of the survey respondents noted that children should begin to learn about computers at a young age. The purpose of this column is to explain ways that parents, caregivers, and teachers of young children can introduce technology to young children while building early literacy skills.